Every Coen Brothers Movie, Ranked

The Coen Brothers, or just Ethan and Joel to their close pals, have never made a bad film. Sure, there have been disappointments. But in a world where Fifty Shades Of Black and Sinister 2 exist, any film by the idiosyncratic pairing is devoured rapidly by cinephiles.

Hail, Caesar! is their latest effort. And to celebrate its release, I decided to take on the unenviable task of ranking the Coen Brothers collection. It was impossible. And I felt as though I betrayed every single film that didn’t finish number one. Which is exactly why they’re cinema’s favorite siblings.

This was really fucking difficult. I would make the obligatory Sophie’s Choice comparison, but she only had two children to choose from and neither had the complexity of A Serious Man or seemed likely to match the thrills of Fargo. Here's my ranking. What's yours?

17. The Ladykillers

OK, I lied. This part of my list was easy. The Ladykillers is an odd film because it’s not odd. It lacks the usual flair of characterization that normally makes even minor characters in a Coen Brother film memorable. Instead it just feels like a waste of Tom Hanks. As you’d expect, their script is still speedy, tight, and has plenty of laughs, while their direction is slick and moody. But, in comparison to other Coen films, it’s underwhelming. And except for the magnificent Irma P. Hall and J.K. Simmons, the only good to come out of The Ladykillers is that this was the first time Joel and Ethan Coen shared producing and directing credits. Still better than most Hollywood drivel, though.